1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to a method and apparatus for supporting and transferring substrates during photomask fabrication.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor device geometries have dramatically decreased in size since such devices were first introduced several decades ago. Since then, integrated circuits have generally followed the two year/half-size rule (often called Moore's Law), which states that the number of devices on a chip doubles every two years. Today's fabrication plants are routinely producing devices having 0.35 μm and even 0.18 μm feature sizes, and tomorrow's plants soon will be producing devices having even smaller geometries.
Increasing circuit densities have placed additional demands on processes used to fabricate semi-conductor devices. For example, as circuit densities increase, the widths of vias, contacts and other features, as well as the dielectric materials between them, decrease to sub-micron dimensions. However, the thickness of the dielectric layers remains substantially constant, with the result that the aspect ratios for the features, i.e., their height divided by width, increases. Reliable formation of high aspect ratio features is important to the success of sub-micron technology and to the continued effort to increase circuit density and quality of individual substrates and die.
High aspect ratio features are conventionally formed by patterning a surface of a substrate to define the dimensions of the features and then etching the substrate to remove material and define the features. To form high aspect ratio features with a desired ratio of height to width, the dimensions of the features are required to be formed with certain parameters, which is typically defined as the critical dimensions of the features. Reliable formation of high aspect ratio features with desired critical dimensions requires precise patterning and subsequent etching of the substrate.
A technique commonly used to form precise patterns on substrates is photolithography. In conventional photolithographic processes, a photoresist material is applied on a substrate layer to be etched. A light source emitting ultraviolet (UV) light is typically used to expose the photoresist layer to chemically alter the composition of the photoresist. However, the photoresist layer is only selectively exposed. In this respect, a photomask, or “reticle,” is positioned between the light source and the substrate being processed. The photomask contains the desired configuration of features for the substrate. The exposed, or alternatively, the unexposed photoresist material is then removed to expose the underlying material of the substrate. The retained photoresist material remains as an etch resistant pattern on the substrate. The exposed underlying material may then be etched to form the desired features in the substrate, i.e., contacts, vias, or other features.
Photolithographic photomasks, or reticles, typically comprise a substrate of an optically transparent silicon based material, such as quartz. A light-shielding layer of metal, typically chromium, is patterned on the surface of the substrate. The metal layer is patterned and etched to form features which define the pattern, and correspond to the dimensions of the features to be transferred to a substrate, such as a semiconductor wafer.
The deposition and etching processes employed to fabricate the photomask requires that the substrate be transferred and supported within a processing system. It has become desirable to utilize processing equipment and systems which are configured for processing the substrates themselves when fabricating the photomasks. However, these systems are typically configured to process circular substrates, and must be reconfigured to support and transfer rectangular photomasks. In addition, the systems used to support and transport the substrates used in photomask fabrication must carefully handle the substrates to prevent scratches and other defects from being formed on the substrates. These defects can alter the light transmission properties of the substrates and result in defective photomasks.
Therefore, there is a need for a method and apparatus for transferring and supporting substrates in processing systems which minimizes defect formation.